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1/22/2009 What’s your current situation with you and Joe Budden?  We were sparring. We were sparring and I think people forgot what I could do on the mic because I don’t be putting out songs every day. Sometimes people get in a comfort zone and they are rudely awakened.  Did you and Joe Budden really speak on the phone to squash everything? No. I keep hearing shit. I think Just Blaze put that out there I expect another Joe Budden record by the weekend and then we'll see what happens from there. Will “Pushing Buddens” be your last diss record to Joe Budden?  Yeah. Absolutely. Absolutely. Battle rap shit ain’t my thing even though I can obviously do it. But I don’t think that God gave me this gift, this gift that I got from God, to sit here and try to insult somebody and make them look bad. I think my calling is much, much bigger than that. I will not continue to spend time, energy, focus and effort to create music or songs just to insult people.  It sounded like you were much more focused on “Pushing Buddens” than you were on “No Problemz.”  I was playing his game. He thought he was actually beating me but I’m not going to show my hand. You showed your hand. I’m not going to show my hand. You feel me? It was a situation where it was like, ‘Okay, he threw out some weak shit. I ain’t gonna throw out the strongest shit but I’m going to make sure that it’s better than yours.’ I wasn’t going to go in there and just try to use all of my ammunition in the first round. You don’t do that. That was round one. You don’t shoot yourself in the foot.  How did you feel when you first heard Joe Budden’s diss to you “Pain in his Life”?  When I heard “Pain in his Life,” I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t eat for that night, I swear to God. I ain’t lying. Woo. That’s one of the illest diss records I’ve ever heard, man.  A lot of fans were saying on HipHopGame that Joe got you after that. How did that feel?  Yeah, I know. They’re unloyal. That’s the thing about hip-hop fans. They’ll leave you in one day. Now he has to go through what I went through yesterday today. He’s going though what I’m going through yesterday today and it’s funny how the tables turn in one day because ever since he put it out it was about going to the studio. I heard that and it was like, ‘Damn!’ Whatever, man. It was good for the sport and it was good for New York. I don’t want to try to kill the nigga or nothing. I ain’t trying to kill him.  Did you ever feel like this situation could turn violent?  Yeah, I did think it was going to turn violent, absolutely. You don’t understand. I didn’t want to battle this nigga, B. I knew he did this battle shit and I didn’t want my first battle to be with a nigga like Joe Budden. This nigga battled everybody and I can’t remember him ever losing. I can’t recall him taking an L so now it was a situation with me where it was like, ‘Oh shit. Damn.’ He called me out. Once he called me out I had to say something. Of course I was thinking if I could catch him it would be a little easier for me to just fight him and we could spar. (laughs) But I did my thing.  Joe Budden has a boxing background. How do you think a fight between the two of you would turn out?  I don’t know. I’m a hard guy to beat in a fight, man. I’m pretty hard to beat in a fight, man, one on one, because I’m a pitbull. I have a high tolerance for pain so unless you knock me out cold, I’m in the fight.  Who do you think is the better battle rapper, you or Joe Budden?   The better battle rapper? Overall?  Overall.  Probably him. I don’t know, man. I don’t know now because I never pushed myself. I never pushed myself in that realm. Who knows? If I did that I might end up being the best fucking battle rapper ever but I don’t spend that much time on that.  Do you think you crossed the line when you talked about Joe Budden’s son being gay?  Um, yes and no. Yes and no. Personally, when I was writing the shit, I was thinking it was some crazy shit to say about an innocent child but at the same time all is fair in love and war and it was verbal and it was war. When America goes to war, they bomb shit. They don’t go, ‘Oh no, don’t bomb that shit because there’s a kid in there.’ That’s unfortunate but that’s the world we live in. I felt I went overboard but he went overboard as well. Fight fire with fire.  Where do you and Joe go from here?  Whatever, man. Whatever. Whatever. It’s whatever. I wish everybody the best, you know. I wish everybody love, peace and prosperity. Every man on this earth, if you’re not a fucking child molester or a rapist or just somebody who’s just a foul person then I wish you peace and blessings, man. I got a lot of enemies and I don’t want no more.  Are you guys really done going back and forth?  I don’t know what he’s going to do but I’m done with the battle rapping. I tried it. It was cool and it was fun. Now I have a mission that I’m on in this music thing. I’m on a mission. I’m on a mission to try to do some bigger things than just rap and hip-hop. When I die I want my life to have meant something. We only have a short time here on this planet and then we go back to the earth so while I’m here I’m hoping I can do the right thing.  Are there any parts of this last week going back and forth with Joe Budden that you regret?  I don’t even look at this shit as beef. It came and happened so fast. Even though me and him, we didn’t get along for about a year ever since he said that line about me but for the most part, this whole little thing started two weeks ago. I’m glad to know that if a nigga comes at me the wrong way I know I could bite his fucking head off. I don’t care who it is. If I can go toe to toe with that nigga, I can go toe to toe with anybody. That’s his lane right there. That’s one of those niggas that loves to battle.  When you think about Joe Budden’s punchline about you, do you think you misconstrued that as a diss or do you think he was baiting you?  Nah, I didn’t misconstrue that. I feel that anybody who knows me knows that I’m not a fucked up individual. I’m a good-hearted person. Certain things you wouldn’t say about somebody and then at the same time they know I’m hot-headed. Anybody that’s been in the game knows that that’s the aura I got around me. They know I got a temper so why would you do that? It’s like poking an alligator with a stick. You know not to do that. He might be minding his business and if he turns around and bites your ass that’s no one’s fault but yours. I wasn’t trying to hurt him.  I don’t know why he did that, man, and I don’t think I got out of line. I was just like, ‘Damn, that’s some fucked up shit.’  Switching up, how far along are you on Warning Shots 2?  Oh, that should be out in late March or early April. And it’s fire, man. I should be putting out the single, not even putting out the single, but leaking records. I’m not trying to work the shit traditionally like I would a regular record.  When you went to the “j’s” on “Pushing Budden,” something bothers me about that…  (interrupts) Gerbil.  Yeah.  Gerbil’s spelt with a “g.” Of course I know that but every word doesn’t have a “j.” I said, “You Judases are in trouble.” I ended that with a “t.” Everybody’s saying that “gerbil” is spelled with a “g.” Everything ain’t a fucking “j.”  You know I had to call you out for that.  Come on. You could have found something better than that to call me out on. I know how to spell “gerbil.”  I was hoping you did.  I know how to spell “gerbil.” Yes, sir.  That’s what the people really wanted to know anyway.  I know. They were like, ‘It was hot until he said ‘gerbil.’’ Yo, that “Pump It Up” was smooth, right? That was smooth.  It was.  You didn’t think I could do it. Don’t front. You was doubting me too. Honestly.  Honestly I wasn’t sure how you were going to come back after “Pain in his Life.”  (laughs) So was you and the rest of New York City and the rest of the online community and the whole world. Now they know not to ever bet against the underdog. Sometimes you gotta believe in the underdog.  I didn’t like “No Problemz.”  You didn’t like “No Problemz”? That wasn’t for Joe Budden at all. That record was so old. It was just that I liked the record but when you look at it like it’s a diss record it’s going to be wack because you’re going to be like, ‘Where are the disses?’ There wasn’t no disses. I wish I wouldn’t have put it out then and I would put it out now. The people would be loving it.  Are you back to being Saigon in your fans’ eyes?  You never know. Hip-Hop fans, you never know. They’re different. Hip-Hop fans are a tad bit different.

By Brian Kayser

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